Tuesday
8th April
Session 1; Chair: Julia Manetsberger
13:00 - 13:30 Gertjan Kramer, University of Amsterdam
Spore analysis by multi-omics in five species reveals the common and unique aspects of molecular building plans for bacterial spores
13:30 - 13:50 Corinna Schwarz, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology
Cannibalism promotes sporulation loss in
Bacillus subtilis
13:50 - 14:10 Víctor Freire, University of Zaragoza-CITA
Sporulation of Bacillus subtilis 168 at high salinity increases wet heat resistance and impairs germination due to coat modifications
14:10 - 14:30 Fernando Ramirez-Guadiana, Harvard Medical School
A comparative analysis of spore formation in Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus anthracis
14:30 - 15:00 Christopher Rodrigues, University of Warwick
Uncovering the role of SpoIIIL in cell-cell signalling during the intermediate stages of Bacillus subtilis sporulation
15:00 - 15:30 Coffee & Cake; Posters
Session 2; Chair: Javier Lopez Garrido
15:30 - 16:00 Peter Setlow, UConn Health
Bacterial spore resistance to wet heat – a long running story with surprises still appearing
16:00 - 16:20 Rebecca Caldbeck, University of Cambridge
Unravelling ethylene oxide-based Bacillus spp. spore inactivation
16:20 - 16:40 Dmitry Malyshev, Umeå University
Boosting the killing power of bleach through pH optimization
16:40 - 17:10 Flash poster presentations
17:10 - 17:30 Abram Aertsen, KU Leuven
Trade-offs in the evolvability of endospore properties
17:30 - 17:50 Daniel Zommick, Valent BioSciences
Trends in regulation and adoption of spore forming bacteria as biopesticides
17:50 - 18:10 Julia Manetsberger, Universidad de Jaén
Bacillus spp. as a source of biocontrol agents for major phytopathogens in sustainable olive agriculture
18:10 - 18:30 Flash poster presentations
18:45 - 20:15 Drinks & canapés (Peterhouse Hall)
10:00 Registration opens
12:00 -12:50 Lunch
12:50 - 13:00 Welcome
Wednesday 9th April
08:00 Breakfast
08:30 -09:00 Tea and coffee
Session 3; Chair: Ilka Bischofs
09:00 - 09:20 Kaoutar Hafdane, INRAE, University of Brest
Impact of temperature and pH dynamics on the sporulation of Bacillus subtilis BSB1
09:20 - 09:40 Tina Beck Hansen, The National Food Institute (DTU Food)
New predictive growth model for Bacillus cereus s.l. from panC-groups II, IV, V and VI in cook-chilled starchy foods
09:40 - 10:00 Alexandra Rahmani, INRAE, University of Brest
Acetic acid stress induces resistance and growth adaptation of Bacillus weihenstephanensis KBAB4
10:00 - 10:20 Fanling Li, Huazhong Agricultural University
The MazEF toxin-antitoxin system enhances spore coat permeability for rapid germination in hosts
10:20 - 10:50 Yong-Qing Li, East Carolina University
Modeling heterogeneity, commitment and memory of bacterial spore germination
10:50 - 11:20 Coffee & Pastries; Posters
Session 4; Chair: Stanley Brul
11:20 - 12:00 David Rudner, Harvard Medical School
Cooperativity within and between germinant receptors
12:00 - 12:20 Rosa Heydenreich, ETH Zurich
New thoughts on spore germination in the presence of peptidoglycan fragments
12:20 - 12:40 Pooja Gupta, University of York
Bioenergetic metabolism restarts alongside germinant sensing and hydration in spore germination
12:40 - 13:00 Anne Williams, University of Sheffield
Insights into spore germination: Lessons from live spore imaging in Clostridium sporogenes
13:00 - 14:00 Lunch & Poster session
Session 5; Chair: Rivka Isaacson
14:00 - 14:30 Mike Sleutel, VIB-VUB Center for Structural Biology
Cryo-EM analysis of the Bacillus thuringiensis extrasporal matrix identifies F-ENA as a widespread family of endospore appendages across Firmicutes
14:30 - 14:50 Juliana Nacita, University of Cambridge
Structural and mutational analysis of Bacillus subtilis CotB
14:50 - 15:10 Carmen Olivença, Universidade Nova de
Lisboa
The SH3 domain mediates substrate engagement and the subcellular localization of the Clostridiodes difficile morphogenetic protease YabG
15:10 - 15:30 Marina De Stefano, Federico II University
The ydaJKLMN operon mediates the adhesion properties of Bacillus subtilis spores
15:30 - 15:50 Imrich Barák, Slovak Academy of Sciences
What’s new with bacterial nanotubes
15:50 - 16:20 Coffee & Cake; Posters
Session 6; Chair: Abram Aertsen
16:20 - 16:40 Monika Ehling-Schulz, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna
Persistence in Time: The hunt for Bacillus anthracis spores at a historic tannery site reveals genetic diversity thought extinct
16:40 - 17:00 Venkata Dwarampudi, Dstl Porton Down
Comparing the efficacy of vacuum technologies to traditional swabbing methods for sampling spores from complex surfaces
17:00 - 17:20 Jonas Segervald, Umeå University
Ultra-sensitive detection of bacterial spores via SERS
17:20 - 17:40 Rebecca Pearman, Northumbria University
Understanding Bacillus spore interactions with textiles
17:40 - 18:10 Marina Aspholm,
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
ENAs: The adhesive force behind Bacillus cereus spore persistence and biofilm strength
Open dinner
Thursday 10th April
08:00 Breakfast
08:30 -09:00 Tea and coffee
Session 7; Chair: Ezio Ricca
09:00 - 09:20 Xingchen Zhao, The National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark
Bacillus cereus sensu lato, a tricky problem for upgrading brewers’ spent grain into solid-state fermented food
09:20 - 09:40 Anne Gleißle, University of Hohenheim
Commercially non-sterile plant-based milk alternatives – heat stable endospore-formers – prevalence, inactivation and growth
09:40 - 10:00 Stefany Castaldi, University of Naples Federico II
The triterpenoid curcumene mediates the relative hydrophilicity of Bacillus subtilis spores
10:00 - 10:20 Jared Heffron, Novonesis
Endospore production on the industrial scale with Novonesis
10:20 - 10:50 Stanley Brul, University of Amsterdam
Microbiomes and spores; challenges ahead in health and disease
10:50 - 11:20 Coffee & Pastries; Posters
Session 8; Chair: Imrich Barák
11:20 - 12:00 Rivka Isaacson, King’s College London
Structure and function of MdfA, a novel ClpC adaptor for metabolic differentiation
12:00 - 12:20
Rebecca Schira, Max-Planck-Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology
Passive but dynamic: quantifying bioelectric changes in single dormant spores responding to external pH and salts
12:20 - 12:40 Shreya Choudhary, Virginia Tech
A family of lipoproteins affecting Bacillus subtilis germination
12:40 - 13:00 Adriano Henriques, Universidade Nova de
Lisboa
A YicC-like endoribonuclease delays sporulation via degradation of a sRNA in Clostridioides difficile
13:00 - 14:00 Lunch & Poster session
Session 9; Chair: David Rudner
14:00 - 14:30 Joseph Sorg, Texas A&M University
The impact of YabG mutations on Clostridioides difficile spore germination and processing of spore substrates
14:30 - 14:50 Marcel Shams-Eddin, Virginia Tech
Characterization of membrane-associated proteolytic cleavages affecting spore germination in Bacillus subtilis
14:50 - 15:10 Alejandro Boscan, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology
Spore alanine racemases modulate germination in structured environments
15:10 - 15:30 Max Kilian, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology
Observing the latest stages of spore morphogenesis and sporulation failures in Bacillus subtilis
15:30 - 15:50 Patrick Eichenberger, New York University
A second look at neglected sporulation genes
15:50 - 16:20 Coffee & Cake; Posters
Session 10; Chair: Patrick Eichenberger
16:20 - 16:50 Véronique Broussolle, INRAE, Avignon Université
Protein-protein interactions during exosporium formation: some keys to lock the spore
16:50 - 17:10 Li Xu, Huazhong Agricultural University
Bacillus thuringiensis: How spore-associated crystal Cry21Aa is located inside the cap structure of the exosporium
17:10 - 17:30 Alexandra Cusmano, Cardiff University
Naturally occurring mutations in the protective antigen gene are unlikely to adversely affect its pore-forming ability
17:30 - 17:50 Adrià Sogues, VIB-VUB Center for Structural Biology
Endospore appendages link spores and toxins forming a biofilm matrix in Bacillus thuringiensis
17:50 - 18:10 Joshua Yarrow, University of Cambridge
Computational and combinatorial adventures within the spore-coat and the germinosome: from evolutionary couplings to predictive interactomics
18:10 - 18:20 Poster and Oral Presentation prizes
19:00 - 19:30 Pre-dinner Drinks Reception
19:30 - 21:00 Conference Dinner
21:00 - After dinner drinks